But soon after a satisfactory - although not mind-blowing - experience with an author new to me, I recognized the need to alter my sixteen-year-old model. This newer iteration is more flexible while retaining the needed discrimination of the original. See if you agree.
Heretofore, authors will be placed into one of three tiers for this reading snob:
a.) Those I will not return to, under any circumstances. The names of those authors will never be mentioned on this blog. Private conversations? A different kettle of fish.
b.) Those I might return to, if the right situation presents itself. More info on tier "b" available upon request. The author alluded to in the second paragraph above currently resides in tier "b".
c.) Those I will return to, until they disappoint, at which point that author will move to tier "b." The number of disappointments allowed before being relegated to tier "a"? An open question.
Although curious to hear your thoughts on my flawless method, I'm even more curious to hear how it lines up - or does not - with your own. No judgments, or at least, not that many.
I am not as organized as you are about choosing authors/books. I belong to four book clubs and in only two of them do I have any say about the book that is chosen, and that is limited. For those books I choose for myself, I rely on recommendations (many from you!) or in some cases an author I really love. For example, I am reading Partita by Barbara Kingsolver because I love her writing. She does not disappoint. Occasionally I will choose a book because the topic interests me. So, I am not a disciplined as you are:).
ReplyDeleteA perfect example of a tier B relationship I have is with Fyodor Dostoevsky. Late July to early August, I read Notes from Underground. It was short but it dragged on for an eternity. Dostoevsky did a great job of writing in the style and from an unsufferable person, and it was an uncomfortable read, but maybe that was necessary. I do like deep psychological books that make me stew after reading it, but I'm avoiding Dostoevsky for the moment due to how dense his prose is. Rest assured, Crime and Punishment will get its time in the sun but not for a while! And I'm equally as reluctant to delve into Joseph Conrad; Heart of Darkness seems just as, if not, more dense than Notes. But a good story is a good story and you have to adopt a certain mentality and tolerance to read it.
ReplyDeleteI'll have to ask out of curiosity, is Vonnegut a Tier A author for you? and Dostoevsky, Conrad? Because I personally enjoyed a couple of his short stories and Slaughterhouse-Five and Mother Night. That's all I've read from his oeuvre so far but for me, he's between Tier B and Tier C but I read whatever I feel like is worthy lol